As technology (IT Industry) is growing, new jobs are taking place in the market like scrum master, Big data analyst, etc. Initially, for the support of developers and quality enhancement, one job role appeared as Tester but with the passage of time it became QA, and then we figured out QC.
Now a new term is coming into the market known as “Full Stack QA”. Initially, this term is used for developers; all those developers who can work on the front-end and back-end are called full-stack developers. Similarly, the term “Full Stack QA” is used for QA Engineers who have expertise in all areas of Quality Assurance. Today’s hiring companies are looking for people who are ‘Jacks Of All Trades’ and not ‘Master of just one trade’.
Who is Full Stack QA?
It would describe an all-rounder who can perform various types or levels of testing such as manual testing, automation testing, security testing, performance testing, and so on. He/she should also be able to manage the team and assist the manager in his job role.
Required skills/responsibilities of a Full Stack QA Engineer
Following are some skills required to be a full-stack QA engineer. These skills are some common skills collected from job requirements posted on major job portals such as LinkedIn and Glassdoor:
- Strong knowledge of agile methodology, software QA methodologies, tools, and processes.
- Strong knowledge of SDLC.
- Ability to write test scenarios and test cases for manual testing.
- Understanding of testing frameworks.
- Writing automation test cases.
- Expertise in API testing.
- Experience in API automation.
- Experience with CI/CD tools such as Jenkins.
- Experience in Bug tracking and reporting tools.
- Experience in Project management tools.
- Experience in proofreading especially for websites.
- Strong knowledge of business processes.
- Experience in multi-tasking and pressure handling.
- Abilities to handle a team (project management skills).
- Must be up to date with the latest trends in the industry.
- Strong Knowledge of SQL.
- Experiences in query writing for DB testing.
- Soft skills.
Pros & cons
The benefit of continuous learning – in this job role, a person has a chance to learn multiple technologies and tools. As explained earlier, a full-stack QA engineer will be responsible for both manual and automation testing. If you look at the skills mentioned in the above section, you can understand what type of knowledge a full-stack QA engineer is required to have. For such a wide range of skills, you need to keep learning new skills at regular intervals and keep yourself updated.
Every challenge is coming with new opportunities. The roadmap from “tester” to “full-stack QA engineer” is a long and challenging one. But a full stack QA engineer will find more career opportunities, and they will have the opportunity to have a much greater influence on the product, which will reach the end-user at a higher level of quality than ever before.
Too much pressure on one person to do everything – Full-stack QA engineers can enjoy multiple benefits working at such a significant position but at the same time, it comes with a great workload. Working in an agile team with the pressure of continuous learning along with the use of existing knowledge efficiently may create an extra layer of overstretching.
If a certain tool is not in demand, it might take time to learn a similar new tool – As mentioned earlier, a full-stack QA engineer needs to be aware of the new market developments and keep himself ready to learn new tool or technology as early as possible to make the best use of it in the existing project. With the great workload coming with the position, it might get difficult for the person to manage everything on hand.
Conclusion
KEEP LEARNING – is the key for any individual who wants to opt for software testing as a career and for the ones who are already working as QA engineers. Things are changing rapidly so it will be difficult to make a place in the market without continuous learning.